Crushed Flower, Recoiling Snake
by Le Chat Qui Garde La Lune
Summary: Fleur Delacour is an Unspeakable with the French Ministry. What happens when her assignment involves Severus Snape, a dreaded figure from her past?


Recoiling Snake, Crushed Flower

FLEUR/SEVERUS!

http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=439510

Farfetched I know, but ORIGINAL! And kinda cool!

Admit it. :)

This fic will be rated R for certain thematic elements, mostly rape. Sorry! 

(Harry's Fifth Year)

A/N: And don't worry about Fleur being a Mary-Sue, because she does have a dark secret, several in fact. And **for the sake of my sanity, I'm not typing out Fleur's accent!**

  
Fleur Delacour sighed heavily. She was bored. But there was more to it than that. She was restless, and scared. The second task had only been a year ago. How **_dare_** they drag her little sister into this? Some of the only family Fleur had left to protect! The only pure, innocent Delacour! Fleur wanted a position where she could keep an eye on Lucius Malfoy, and, most importantly, Severus Snape. A position where she could make sure that none of the Death Eaters ever laid a hand on another Delacour woman ever again!

Fleur shook her head impatiently. As an Unspeakable for the French Ministry of Magic, she knew what had to be done, and she couldn't let her personal feelings get in the way of this. She knew that she had to go back to Hogwarts, and help the Order of the Phoenix. But, truth be told, she was embarrassed. Before she had left for Hogwarts for the Tournament, the year before she had been employed by the French Ministry, who had told her, if chosen, to downplay her success in the Tournament. So, for the sake of her job, Fleur had to play the stereotypical, gorgeous, dumb blonde. And she had hated it. 

Suddenly, a head popped into the fireplace in her office. It was her boss, M. Dupont.

"Fleur, ma petite! Il y a un boulot pour toi à Poudlard!"

Fleur jerked up, "A job for me at Hogwarts? With who? How?"

"I don't know, all Dumbledore said is that he'd expect you at 4 o'clock this afternoon. I suppose it's the first day of school for those little British brats."

"Harry saved Gabrielle's life." Fleur said slowly. But apparently her boss didn't know how much that meant, or, he didn't care.

"Bah, they're all alike. Bucktoothed English horses." He said. Anyway. I don't expect to see you back till the summer holidays! But I do expect an owl once a day. And I want the registration number on the fireplace in your office by the time I walk out of here tonight! Got it?"

"Oui, Monsieur Dupont."

And with a little click he was gone.

At three thirty sharp, Fleur apparated into the sleepy little village of Hogsmeade with only a suitcase. 

By three forty-four, she had walked into the Great Hall of Hogwarts, where she was greeted by Minerva McGonagall. 

"Ah, Miss Delacour, this way please, to Professor Dumbledore's quarters."

Once past a stone gargoyle, which immediately sprung aside with the words, 'Blood Lolly,' Fleur finally reached Professor Dumbledore's office. 

"Ah Miss Delacour," Dumbledore said, echoing Professor McGonagall's previous words. "Its nice to have you with us, won't you take a seat?"

He nodded to McGonagall, who left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her. 

"I do not know if you understand Miss Delacour, the importance of your mission with the French Ministry's Intelligence. Your beauty and your brains make a somewhat lethal combination for your opponents, but to your friends, and employers you are truly a gem."

"Now, Miss Delacour, " Dumbledore continued, I understand from your superiors that your best area is Defense Against the Dark Arts."

At this, Fleur beamed, she was exceptional at that subject. 

"However, judging from your "performance" at the Second Task in last years' Triwizard Tournament, where you were "defeated" by Grindylows,"

Fleur winced. The Second Task had been the hardest, letting Danielle almost drown, and having to pretend to not be able to escape from mere Grindylows, well,"

"So, Dumbledore told her, "I would have decided to fall back on your next best subject..."

"Ah!" Said Fleur, "Charms!"

"Yes," Professor Dumbledore smiled, "But with your, er, Veela Charm, the amount of charms in the room might prove unstable, and cause problems. So I've decided to place you with your third best subject, which I'm told is also quite excellent. You'll be working with our Potions Master. Severus Snape."

Dumbledore smiled at Fleur. "And he was a Deatheater, who is now a double agent, so, you'll learn a lot that you didn't know before."

"I doubt that." Fleur said coldly. "Severus Snape and I have met before, and it was not under the best of circumstances. I'm amazed he even agreed to this!"

"Oh! Well, er-that is to say, he didn't!" Said Dumbledore jovially. I thought you'd break the news to him, you see he has quite a temper. But I'm sure with your Veela charms you'll manage just wonderfully!"

"If you'll excuse me, the students arrive at six, so I'd better make sure everything's in order! That should give you time to make the necessary preparations. Your excuse for being here is that you want to improve your English, and that Professor Snape might be absent for a portion of the year, and you're his replacement."

Fleur sighed heavily "Fine" she said finally. "Fine." 

Maybe Severus wouldn't even remember, after all? Why would he? She had been barely five years old at the time he last saw her, before this year of course.

"Oh, and Miss Delacour, in case of any emergency, you are in charge of the Slytherin House. So I suggest you adopt a firm tone starting tomorrow with Severus' first class. Don't take any talking back, or they'll abuse you forever.

She only nodded, and walked away.

Her living quarters were really quite pleasant, Fleur explored through them, and dillied and dallied, for as long as she could, until it was finally time to witness the sorting.

It was there that she saw him. Severus Snape was talking to a rather dumpy, excited looking witch. Fleur would have bet 1000 Galleons that he was fighting the urge to sneer At her. Instead he looked up at Fleur who smiled slyly. She put on as much Veela charm as she deemed appropriate, and extended a small, fragile looking, but perfect white hand.

"Hello Professor Snape. I see we meet again." 

"Indeed we do," Severus said, and this time he really sneered at her.

"Meet any Grindylows lately?" He asked snidely. "Obviously not or you wouldn't be here."

That was it, Fleur snapped. 

"Met a yet girl yet Snape?" she continued mercilessly. "Or are you still a virgin?"

He turned white. She supposed that she was hitting below the belt, literally. But, as everyone knew from last years' world cup, even charming, seductive Veelas could turn nasty.

Some of the teachers gasped, Fleur supposed they had heard. Too bad, there wasn't much they could do. She wasn't really employed by Hogwarts anyway. And even if she was "fired" she'd rather go back to her job as a full-time Unspeakable, than help that slimy snake-in-the-grass Snape. 

"I'm surprised that you of all people are making light of my sex life Miss Delacour." Said Severus.

"Oh don't worry. I'll be doing it more often, seeing as we're to teach together this entire year." Said Fleur sweetly.

That did it. Fleur couldn't believe the reaction that this caused in Snape. First he turned white, then red, then he exploded. Luckily, he couldn't vent his anger because, that particular moment was the one that Albus chose to burst into the Great Hall followed closely behind by Professor McGonagall and what looked to be the entire student body of Hogwarts, sans First Years of course. 

That night after the sorting and the feast, Fleur decided that she had to talk to Severus. No matter how much he blew up, or what he brought up about the past. Slowly, she snuck out of her room, looking for the Potion Masters chambers. Luckily, he found her, by that time Fleur was very lost. This area was not a place she had been last year.

"Miss Delacour." Severus said nodding to her.

"Er- Fleur please, it will help things I suppose." Fleur said coldly

"Very well, since you extend this _courtesy_ to me, I feel that I must return it." Severus said sneering.

How could he make everything that came out of his mouth seem so snide? Fleur wondered. Well, she'd better get to the point.

"How much have you been told?" she asked him shortly. "How much do you know?"

He rolled his eyes. And here the little missy goes, talking like an auror!'

Fleur only raised her eyebrows.

"You are an auror?" He asked incredulously.

"Don't be silly," Fleur said, trying very hard not to laugh. "They have to kill people, and they get hurt!"

Severus gave her a superior look. "I should have known, a Delacour could never do something like that. Not a _perfect_ Delacour."

She smiled, savoring what she was about to tell him.

"Exactly," she said primly. "Which is why I became an Unspeakable for the French Ministry. We don't dirty our clothes nearly as much.

Severus' jaw dropped.

"But- why?" he asked.

She tried to look at him coldly, but succeeded only in looking miserable.

"To prevent another little girl from going through what I did." She said, collected at last.

Severus just stared at her.

"Are you referring to me?"

"You, you, and, and _them_, yes."

"And that's why you did this, that's why you gave up your lifestyle, for that? Because of what we-_I _did?"

"If you must know, yes." Said Fleur

"And I want to spare Gabrielle, and my future children from that sort of cruelty." She told him matter-of-factly.

As Fleur was falling asleep that night, she replayed their conversation in her mind over and over. She knew what she needed to know for the next day's lessons. But she had a feeling that Severus was keeping something from her. Something important and she wanted to know what it was.

She swore to find out. She swore to get revenge on Severus Snape.

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A/N: Wow. I have a feeling that the story made no sense. Probably not, I'm exhausted and my beta's Internet isn't working. I wanted to get it posted though.


End file.
